By:Angela Marshall
Say proposed state aid is not enough
For years, Long Island superintendents and school board
members have asked for more autonomy in how they spend their state aid. And that's just what Gov. Pataki granted when he announced his proposal for the 2001-02 state budget. However, it's not quite what the superintendents had in mind.
State aid for schools is divided into three basic packages --
unrestricted, categorical and expense-driven. Last year, only 15 percent of the aid fell into the unrestricted category, which can be spent any way a district wants. Forty-one percent was designated in specific categories, such as textbooks. The remainder, 26 percent, was reimbursable, which means that ,if a school district spent money to fund such a thing as special education, it could be reimbursed.
Under the governor's proposal for next school year, 54 percent of state aid would fall into the unrestricted category, which he calls flex aid, giving the local administrators the freedom they have craved. Normally, that would have them dancing in the aisles. But few found reason to celebrate once they realized some of the implications that came with it.
The governor "has clearly made a statement -- although I don't think there's enough money there -- that he wants money in the unrestricted-aid packages and he's willing to take it from other areas," Rockville Centre Superintendent William Johnson said during a forum with state Assembly members from Nassau County last Friday.
Long Island superintendents hold this once-a-year forum to make sure state lawmakers are aware of their concerns.
The problem, according to Johnson, is that the governor's proposal will eliminate aid for some things, such as special education, which has been folded into flex aid. Until now, school districts would be partially reimbursed for outlays to educate special students.
Under the new system, funding would not be based on local outlays. Now, it will be tied to total enrollment for the district without taking the high cost of living on Long Island into consideration.
Rockville Centre school board member Keith Gaskell said it would come down to a throw of a dice. One school district could have many children whose education costs over $100,000 a year. Another, might have none. "This should be the state's responsiblity to a certain percentage and they have forgotten about that," said Gaskell.
Currently, Johnson said Nassau County schools are funded at about 70 percent of their expense in special education. "We're going to lose that money," he said.
Joe Conway, spokesperson for the governor, defended the plan after the meeting, saying that it allows superintendents to do what they've always wanted -- target their resources.
No bucks for the bonds
Another concern of superintendents is the shrinking building-aid budget. According to Johnson, if present formulas were used, there would be $485 million in new aid for buildings. However, the governor's proposal includes only $169 million in new aid.
Under the new system, building projects would be rated
based on priority, and only those judged to be the most in need would receive aid. This has school boards across the Island struggling with decisions to continue with projects or put them on hold, Johnson said.
PTA members from Malverne called the news eye-opening.
The district is planning to put up a bond vote this year. And the PTA members were shocked that they might not be able to get help from the state. "It's very upsetting," said Pat Martinez.
Without getting into specifics, representatives from the Assembly all promised an increase in the funding provided by the governor. "I can assure you that we will have a lot of restoration," Harvey Weisenberg (D-Long Beach) said.
However, they made no promises about coming up with a
budget on time, as requested by the superintendents. "I'd rather take a longer time and come away with a good deal," said Robert Barra (R-Lynbrook).
The standard question
Changes in the aid formula was just one issue raised by Long Island superintendents. The new standards, charter schools and tax certiorari were also tackled.
Four years after Commissioner Richard Mills decided to
raise standards for New York students, superintendents are still calling for adequate money to fund changes to meet those standards.
"Two out of every three dollars that we are spending
on [the standards] must be spent by the local taxpayers," Johnson said. "We need help from the state."
Cost was not the only problem parents at the meeting
had with the standards. Karen Meoni, director of the Nassau District PTA, said that while she understands the need to raise the bar on education, the "duration of testing is robbing the students of valuable instructional time."
This year, eighth-graders are to take up to eight tests: science, English Language Arts, math, social studies, earth science Regents, foreign language proficiency, Sequential I and technology.
"The children are coming up with stress-related
illnesses," said Catherine Lopez of North Merrick, who called the pressure on students ridiculous.
"The school is doing its very best," said Lopez. "But, my daughter is an 'A' student and she's falling apart."
The superintendents are requesting that the state limit the
assessments to two major tests a year. They feel this could be accomplished, in part, by combining the math, science and technology tests into one.
Lawsuit could cost schools
A lawsuit filed by a Christine D. Marcin of Garden City seeking to change the way the county refunds property taxes also had superintendents riled.
If successful, the lawsuit could mean that school districts would have to reach into their own pockets to refund tax payments to over-assessed homeowners.
Marcin filed the suit in a Federal District Court in October. The suit seeks to eliminate the section of the Nassau Administrative Code that requires the county to pay the full amount of property-tax refunds to homeowners who successfully challenge their tax bill, including the school-tax portion. The suit contends that this section of the county code is unconstitutional, a violation of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. New York State, Nassau County and all county school districts are named as defendants in the lawsuit.
According to Marcin's lawyer, Alan Levine, some school districts are more successful than others in winning property-tax challenges against the county. But, because the county has to borrow money to pay the refunds, taxpayers across the county must repay the bond. In essence, said Levine, some school districts and their residents are benefiting at the expense of others.
Sheldon Dumain, Bellmore superintendent, expressed the group's concerns about making any changes to the current system, saying it could cost local taxpayers thousands of dollars. He asked the legislators to fight to uphold the current law.
Guest list questioned
Even though Dr. Herb Brown, Oceanside School District
superintendent, called the forum a way to build bridges, parents and even a few Assembly members wondered why invitations were extended only to the Assembly and not to the Senate.
Rita Sass, a PTA member from Lynbrook, believes that
Having senators there would have helped get the schools' needs across. Brown said the superintendents would consider inviting senators next year.
